


Now You Don't

by NightshadeDawn



Series: That happened... [9]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Imaginary Friends, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Imaginary Friends, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-16
Updated: 2017-08-16
Packaged: 2018-12-15 23:20:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11816304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightshadeDawn/pseuds/NightshadeDawn
Summary: Hinata didn't know his name, he'd always just been called Blue. Just as he'd always been there. But Hinata's getting too old for imaginary friends, isn't he?Sequel to "Now You See Me".





	Now You Don't

**Author's Note:**

> Based off the prompt: "And she cried for him- my God, did she cry for him- the boy who never existed at all."
> 
> Of course, she is turned into a he.

        The first time Hinata saw the boy called Blue he'd never remember. It wasn't that he had a bad memory, Blue had just showed up when Hinata was too young to remember anything at all.

        He was an angry little thing, who always seemed to prefer pulling baby Hinata's hair than anything else.

        Hinata would cry and cry for a reason neither of his parents could fathom, and often had him at the hospital to check it out. The doctors said it was normal. There was nothing wrong with him, he'd grow out of it eventually.

        Hinata never _did_ stop being an easy crier. Blue just stopped being such a meanie. Sometimes. Sort of. Okay, not really, but Hinata stopped seeing all of it as mean but instead of Blue's way to show affection.

        Hinata was four and going through a coloring faze. His parents couldn't keep him in enough paper, coloring books, or crayons. 

        He hummed to himself, talking to Blue across the table as he colored. 

        "What you got there, Shou?" his mother asked, a cup of tea in her hand as she sat down on the couch behind him. 

        Hinata smiled proudly as he held up the paper with four little people on it. "This is me and my family!" he exclaimed. "Mommy and Daddy and Blue!"

        "Who's Blue?" she questioned, her head tilting a bit.

        "He's my brother! Isn't he?" Hinata was confused. 

        A look of understanding crossed her face. "Oh, no, honey, Blue isn't your brother. He's just a friend," she explained. "But friends are as good as family."

        Hinata's eyes lit up as Mrs. Hinata asked him to tell her about Blue. Hinata launched into a long explanation, going on for a long while about his very bestest friend in the whole world. Mrs. Hinata laughed at all the right spots, asked all the right questions. 

        That night, she revealed to Hinata's father that their son had an imaginary friend that he was very enthusiastic about.

        Mr. Hinata was a big ballplayer, he'd played many different ones in his day. Hinata shared his enthusiasm, so he was taught by his father to play. The one Hinata was most enthusiastic about was volleyball. 

        "I'm gonna grow real tall and block everybody!" Hinata shouted one day (many days, actually) while playing with Blue. He was being very animated with his actions and ended up falling in the dirt after spinning. 

        Blue responded in kind like he always did: a smirk and said "Nope. You're gonna be super short."

        Hinata pouted, pulling himself up onto his knees. Both were dirty and his elbow was scrapped from hitting a rock. But Hinata took notice of neither and stuck his tongue out at Blue. "You're so mean."

        After glaring at each other for a few minutes, Hinata burst out laughing and Blue's face contorted. This version of the boy- he learned to smile. From just being around Hinata, he learned to be happy.

       There was a time that Hinata's parents began to worry about the fact Blue was still around. Hinata was too old for an imaginary friend, many said. He wasn't lonely, he wasn't sick, he wasn't bullied. He was a happy child who had everything he needed and many thing he'd like to have. There was no reason for Blue to stick around.

       So Hinata just stopped talking about Blue, as if Blue were a secret for just Hinata and him alone.

       "Are you really just imaginary?" Hinata asked on the way home from school one day.

       "You're just _now_ getting that?" Blue asked. "Dumbass."

       "Hey! If you're part of my imagination, then you're part of me. Which means you just called yourself a dumbass!" Hinata exclaimed. A few pedestrians on the street gave the young boy odd looks so Hinata ducked his head to hide his embarrassed blush.

       Blue scuffed him upside the head. "Don't think so much, you're gonna hurt what little brain cells you have. Dumbass."

       Hinata stuck his tongue out, skipping out of Blue's reach when Blue lunged at him.

       Blue was honestly more of a hindrance on Hinata than he was help. At least, that's what most would say. Blue yelling at him when Hinata practiced, chastising him for the simplest mistakes, pushing Hinata harder than anyone else would- it kept Hinata going. 

      He had no team, rarely had anyone (that was real, anyway) to practice _with_. In his second year of middle school, Hinata had thought about quitting. He didn't have a team, he had no hope of getting one. 

      Blue had yelled at him an entire night after Hinata had confessed that. 

      About how- Was he weak? Was he really ready to just give up if his dream was to play? He'd worked this hard for this long, he could work like this for a little bit longer. If he quit now, he'd never be able to play well on a high school team. 

      Hinata returned the next day with a renewed vigor. 

      Third year hit like a truck, though. 

      Blue took far longer to appear than usual. There were times when Hinata had to call out to him for him to come. There were times when he didn't seem all there. When he appeared vaguely transparent.

      "What's happening to you?" Hinata demanded worriedly one day. 

       In the light of the streetlamp, Blue looked like a ghost. He still held his regal air, like he always had. He stood up tall, back straight. But he looked sad. 

       "You're growing up," he said.

       "Of course I am! I've always been growing up!" Hinata exclaimed.

       "No, you don't get it," Blue snapped. Then he sighed, trying to calm himself down. "There's a _point_ when I can't stick around and you're nearly there. This is the last time I'm going to be able to be here."

        "What? No!" Hinata exclaimed, jumping over to his friend. Hinata took Blue's hand in his tightly, refusing to let go. Not that Blue was trying to pull away. "You can't just _leave_! You've been here forever! You- You- You-" Hinata swallowed hard, his voice soft and hoarse. "You _can't_ , Blue. i won't let you go."

        The hand that had always felt so real and calloused in Hinata's now felt like silk: there, but so feather light you can barely feel it. 

        Blue put a hand in Hinata's hair, and he could _feel_ it. Blue lightly gripped his hair before lightly ruffling it. "I'm not _dying_ , dumbass," he grumbled. Hinata looked up to see him weakly smiling. 

        "But you're saying you're not going to be here anymore-" Hinata complained.

        Suddenly, Blue just wrapped his arms around the smaller boy. It said all the words he couldn't say. 

        "If I'm part of you, I'm never gonna be far away, dumbass."

        Tears fell out in great rivers from Hinata's eyes as he watched his first, his best, friend fade away before him. He dropped to his knees, the thought of the worry his mother would have for his lateness never crossing his mind.

        "You're the dumbass."

        And he cried for him- my God, did he cry- for the boy who had never existed at all.

        That year, Hinata's team played on a court for the first time. He was excited, but not as much as he would have been.

        He kept going to turn around and tell Blue about something excitedly, only to turn somber when he remembered Blue wasn't there anymore.

        Until suddenly he was. Tall and intimidating and on the other side of the court.

        The hard scowl wasn't something Hinata was used to seeing on Blue's face. It sent a million chills down Hinata's spine.

        He couldn't help himself. He called out to the boy with Blue's face.

_Kageyama Tobio._

        "I'm going to become stronger."

_I know you're not Blue._

        "And I'm going to beat you."

_If I can just see his face again, I'm fine with that._

        "Then I'll be the last one standing!"

_I just want to see him again, even if we're rivals._

***

Epilogue

 

        At some point, friends had turned to lovers such as they almost always do.

        Many games were played. Some were won, some were lost. 

        Blue's face gave way to Kageyama's, and Hinata couldn't imagine a day without looking at it.

        They were sitting with each other, glasses perched on Kageyama's nose as he looked through a book for one of his college classes. Hinata snuggled into his side, semi-reading over Kageyama's shoulder.

        "So what exactly is this about?" he asked.

        "The phycology of imaginary friends," he muttered, turning the page. 

        Hinata hummed. "Did you have an imaginary friend as a kid?" he questioned. 

        Kageyama hesitated before answering. "Yeah," he said. "I did."

        Hinata's eyes went wide and he laughed, turning onto his back to lay across Kageyama's lap, successfully hindering the other from continuing his study. "Me too!" he exclaimed. "He actually kinda looked like you..."

        Kageyama turned pink and looked away. "Me too..."

        Hinata gasped. "Your imaginary friend looked liked you?! Was he supposed to be your twin or something?"

        Kageyama smacked Hinata on the head with his textbook. "No, dumbass. He looked like you."

        Hinata's grin turned even wider and he launched himself at Kageyama to hug him. "Ah, that's so sweet! It's like we're soulmates!"

        "Whatever, dumbass."

        Outside the house, two figures, one made of light the other of shadows, sat on a tree branch.

        They grinned at each other, though with the reunion of the two inside rendered them faceless, and stood up.

        "I believe we did good this time," one said. 

        "Yes," agreed the other. "Shall we go to another?"

        "Let's."

**Author's Note:**

> I wonder if I should tag this as soulmates, because I think this would be a fascinating soulmate AU.


End file.
